Sole-sewing machine.



J. L. DOW.

SOLE SEWING MACHINE. APPLICATION FILED JUNE 24, 1911.

Patented July 6, 1915.

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J. L. DOW.

SOLE SEWING MACHINE.

v I APPLICATION FILED JUNE 24, 191 1. 1,145,059. Patented July 6, 1915.

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SOLE SEWING MACHINE.

APPLICATION r1151) JUNE 24. 1911.

1,145,059. Patented July 6, 1915.

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COLUMBIA FMNOORAPH c0.,wAsH1NuTON, D. C

. UNITED STATES caries.

JOHN L. DOW, OF MELROSE HIGHLANDS, MASSACHUSETTS, ASSIGNOR T0 UNITED SHOE MACHINERY COMPANY, OF PATERSON, NEW JERSEY, A CORPORATION OF NEW JERSEY.

SOLE-SEWING MACHINE.

Application filed June 24., 1911.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, J OHN L. Dow, a citizen of the United States, residing at Melrose Hi hlands, in the county of Middlesex and State of Massachusetts, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Sole-Sewing Machines; and I do hereby declare the following to be a full, clear, and exact description of the invention, such as will enable others skilled in the art to which it appertains to make and use the same.

vThis invention relates to an improvement in sole sewing machines, and more particularly to lock stitch sole sewing machines employing a curved hook needle.

In the manufacture of shoes of the socalled McKay type in which the outsole is at tached to the insole and upper by means of stitches passing completely through the outsole, upper and insole, it is the practice in order to improve the appearance of the shoes and to make them resemble shoes of the Goodyear type'to sew a false welt to the upper outer portion of the outsole before the upper and insole are attached thereto. In certain forms of Goodyear shoes, the outside projects farther beyond the upper around the fore part of the shoe than along the shank, as in shoes having so-called Baltimore or Scotch edges. In such shoes, the stitches which attach the outsole to the welt are usually placed farther from the edge of the outsole and are longer along the shank than around the fore part of the shoe. In order to manufacture McKay shoes which closely resemble Goodyear shoes having Baltimore or Scotch edges, it is desirable in sewing the false welt to the sole to imitate closely the stitching of the Goodyear shoes. In sole sewing machines used in sewing the outsole to the welt in the manufacture of Goodyear shoes having Baltimore or Scotch edges, a manually operable feed changing mechanism is provided and a movable edge gage is connected to the hand lever which controls the feed changing mechanism, so that the distance of the stitches from the edge of the sole and the length of stitch may be simultaneously varied. These machines, as far as I am advised, are not adapted for use in sewing a false welt to an out-sole, since no means is provided for guiding the -welt in its correct Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented July 6, 1915.

Serial No. 635,114.

relative position with respect to the sole at the sewing point as the sole is moved transversely of the line of feed.

The object of the present invention is to provide an attachment for lock stitch curved hook needle sole sewing machines for use in sewing a false welt to a sole by which the sole and welt may be accurately guided in their proper relative positions at the sewing point and moved in unison with relation to the line of feed at the will of the operator during the operation of the stitch forming mechanism to vary the distance of this line of the stitches from the edge of the so e.

A further object of my invention is to provide an attachment for sole sewing machines by which the welt and sole may be guided and moved in unison with relation to the line of feed to vary the distance of the line of stitches from the edge of the sole and welt as the feed changing mechanism is operated to vary the length of stitch.

With the above objects in view, the invention consists in the features and combinations hereinafter described and defined in the claims.

In the accompanying drawings illustrating the invention in the best form at present known to the inventor; Figure 1 is a front elevation of a portion of a sole sewing machine embodying my invention showing also a sole and a welt in position to be sewed; Fig. 2 is a side elevation of the parts shown in Fig. 1; Fig. 3 is a detail plan view of the work table and the welt guide member mounted thereon; Fig. 4 is an under side plan view of the parts shown in Fig. 3, Fig. 5 is a sectional view taken on the line 55 of Fig. 3 showing also the sole and welt in position on the work table; Fig. 6 is a sectional view taken on the line 6-6 of Fig. 3; Fig. 7 is a detail perspective view of the work table; Fig. 8 is a detail perspective view of the welt guide member.

The machine in which the invention is embodied as illustrated in the drawings is of the same general type as that shown and described in the U. S. patent to French & Meyer, No. 473,870, April 26, 1892. The curved hook needle 1, the presser foot 2, the awl 3, the awl segment 4 mounted on the upright 5 carried by the feed slide 6, and

the feed changing mechanism controlled by the feed changing lever 7 are all constructed, arranged and operated substantially as in the French & Meyer patent referred to above.

My invention is especially designed as an improvement on a sole sewing machine provided with the usual edge gage attachment.

The numeral 8 indicates the usual slide on which the edge gage is ordinarily mounted. This slide is adapted to move horizontally upon a guide member 9 and is actuated by a grooved crank arm 10 attached to one end of a short rock shaft 11 and engaging a lug 12 projecting downwardly from the slide 8. The rock shaft 11 is journaled in a bracket 13 and attached to the lower end thereof is an operating lever 14: provided with a handle 15. The lever 14: is connected with the hand lever 7 of the feed changing mechanism by a link 16 pivotally connected with said lever and passing through a perforation in a stud 17 pivoted to a downwardly projecting lug on the feed changing lever. Adjustable stops 18 are mounted on the link 16 on opposite sides of the stud 17. By the provision of connected mechanism for actuating the slide 8 and for operating the feed changing mechanism,

a change in the feed may be secured by the movementof the slide and a movement of the slide may be secured by changing the feed. The parts above described are of well known construction and operate in a well known manner".

In place of the usual work table, I provide a special form of work table indicated by reference numeral 19 and shown in detail in Fig. 7. This table is provided with a broad fiat upper surface 20 and is beveled downwardly as indicated at 21. A guide rib 22 depends from the lower portion of the work table and serves as a guide for the welt guide member hereinafter described. Mounted on the under side of the work support and movable thereon with relation to the line of feed is a welt guide member indicated as a whole by reference numeral 28 and shown in detail in Fig. 8. This member iscomposed of two parts 2 1 and 25 adjustably secured together, and the said parts are so constructed as to form when assembled, a welt guiding passage or opening 26. The

parts 24: and 25 are relatively adjustableto vary the width of the welt guiding passage in order to accommodate and accurately guide welts of varying widths. As a convenient form of connecting means providing for the relative adjustment of said parts, I employ a screw 27 passing through a slot 28 in the member 25 engaging a threaded perforation in a forwardly extending portion 29 of the part 24. Extending upwardly from the welt guide member, with its face on a line with the inner face of the on the work support when the welt guide member is in position on said support and prevents turning movement of said member. The welt guide member is slidably held in position on the work support by means of a shouldered screw 31 which passes through a slot 32 in the member 25, and is screwed into thework table. The upper and lower surfaces of the welt guiding passage are inclined upwardly, as shown in Figs. 1, 5 and 8, and when the welt guide member is'in position on the work support, the beveled portion 21 of said support forms a continuation of the lower. surface of the welt guiding passage. The sole edge gage and the opposite side portion of the welt guide are extended over the flat surface of the work table, as shown in Fig. 3, toomore accurately guide the sole and'the welt.

An important feature of the construction above described is that the sole edge gage and the welt guide engage the sole and welt in proximity to the point of operation of the needle, which is the point at which it is par-- ticularly essential that the welt and sole be accurately guided.

In order to actuate the welt guide member, I connect the said member with the edge gage slide. To this end, in place of the usual edge gage, I. adjustably attach to the edge gage slide a finger 33 shaped as best shown in Figs. 5 and 6, the upper extremity of which finger is received between two spaced parallel ribs 34 extending downwardly from the member 23. .7 By means of this construction, the welt guide member is moved forwardly or rearwardly with the edge gage slide.

In sewing a false *welt to a sole, the parts 241 and 25 are first adjusted to form a welt guiding passage substantially the same width as the welt to be attached to the sole.

The welt is passed through the welt guid-- eration the sole and false welt occupythe same positions with relation to the sewing mechanism as the sole and true welt in sewing a welte d shoe, and the formation and appearance of the stitches will be the same as in a Goodyear shoe. Whenever during the sewing operation, it is desired to vary the distance of the line of stitches from the edge of the sole and welt andto change the length of stitch, as in passing from the shank to the fore part of the sole, or from the fore part of the sole to the shank, either the lever 14 or the feed changing lever 7 is manipulated in the well known manner. The sole and welt are held and guided at all times by the welt guide member in unvarying relative positions and are moved thereby in unison with relation'to the line of feed.

My attachment may be applied to a sole sewing machine of standard type by removing the work table of the machine and attaching in place thereof my work table with the welt guide member mounted thereon. The detachable edge gage is then removed and my welt guide actuating finger is attached to the edge gage slide in place of the edge gage.

While it is preferred to employ the specific construction and arrangement of parts shown and described, it will be understood that this construction and arrangement is not essential except so far as specified in the claims, and may be changed or modified without departing from the invention.

Having explained the nature and object of the invention and having specifically described one embodiment thereof, what is claimed is 1. A sole sewing machine, having, in combination, stitch forming devices including a curved hook needle, a work support, a presser foot, a movable sole guide for engagement with the edge of the sole, a movable welt guide having a unitary structure mounted independently of the presser foot and arranged to engage both edges of the welt, and means for moving the sole and welt guides in unison transversely of the line of feed during the sewing operation to vary the distance of the stitches from the edges of the sole and welt.

2. A sole sewing machine, having, in combination, stitch forming devices including a curved hook needle, a work support, a movable sole guide for engagement with the edge of the sole, a movable welt guide mounted wholly on the work support and arranged to engage both edges of the welt, and means to move the sole and welt guides in unison transversely of the line of feed during the sewing operation to vary the distance of the stitches from the edges of the sole and welt.

3. A sole sewing machine, having, in combination, stitch forming devices including a curved hook needle, a work support, movably mounted sole and welt guides arranged on the needle side of the work support, supporting means for the guides mounted on the side of the work support opposite the needle, and means to move the sole and welt I guides in unison transversely of the line of &

the seam during the sewing operation to vary the distance of the line of stitches from the edges of the sole and welt.

4. A sole sewing machine, having, in combination, stitch forming devices including a curved hook needle, a work support, a sole guide mounted on the work support, a welt guide mounted on the work support and arranged between the sole guide and work support, and means to move the welt and sole guides in unison transversely of the line of feed during the sewing operation to vary the distance of the line of stitches from the edges of the sole and welt.

5. A sole sewing machine, having, in combination, stitch forming devices including a curved hook needle, a work table, a member mounted onthe under side of the work support and overhanging the work supporting surface of the work support, a welt guide and a sole guide carried by the overhanging portion of said member, and means to move said member transversely of the line of feed to vary the distance of the line of stitches from the edges of the welt and sole.

6. A sole sewing machine, having, in combination, stitch forming devices including a curved hook needle, a member mounted on the under side of the work support and overhanging the work supporting surface thereof, a welt guide carried by the overhanging portion of said member and arranged adjacent the work supporting surface of the work support, means to support the sole above the welt, a sole edge guide carried by the overhanging portion of-said member and arranged between the welt guide and the needle, and means to move said member transversely of the line of feed during the sewing operation to vary the distance of the line of stitches from the edges of the welt and sole.

7. A sole sewing machine, having, in combination, stitch forming devices including a curved hook needle, a work support, movable welt and sole guides, supporting means for said guides mounted wholly on the work support and extending forwardly of the guides, and means to move said guides in unison transversely of the line of feed during the sewing operation to vary the distance of the line of stitches on the edges of the welt and sole.

8. A sole sewing machine, having, in combination, stitch forming devices including a curved hook needle, a work support, a movable welt guide mounted on the work support, a movable sole guide mounted on the work support and arranged between the welt guide and the needle, supporting means for the guides mounted on the side of the work support opposite the needle, and means to move the welt and sole guides in unison transversely of the line of feed during the sewing operation to vary the distance of the line of stitches from the edges of the Welt and sole.

9. A sole sewing machine, having, in combination, stitch forming devices including a curved hook needle, a work support, a movable Welt guide, a movable sole guide arranged on the needle side of the Welt guide, supporting means for the guides mounted on the Work support and extending forwardly of the guides, and means tomove 10 the guides in unison transversely of the line of feed during the sewing operation to vary the distance of the line of stitches from the edges of the Welt and sole.

JOHN L. DOW. Witnesses:

FREDERICK L. EDMANDs, J AMES R. HODDER.

Copies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressing the Commissioner of Patents,

Washington, D. C. 

